52 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
ing terms, etc., and informing them also that all they have to 
do is to fill out the application blank and remail and on receipt 
of same the agent’s outfit will go forward. It will take but a 
few minutes to fill out the application sheet and a 2c postage 
stamp to mail it to the nurseryman. The agent will say: 
“ Well, I will send for an outfit; it will not cost anything.” In 
this way, I am sure, a large number of outfits, sent out by nur¬ 
serymen, fall into the hands of men who made application 
through mere curiosity, having no honest intention of engaging 
in the work. After the agent has the outfit in his hands the 
nurseryman very often finds it a hard matter to get his prop¬ 
erty back, all requests being ignored until the nurseryman 
threatens to make trouble, and even then many outfits are lost. 
The nurseryman not only loses the outfit, but the expense of 
sending it out, time, postage, etc. Now, I say this can be 
checked if all the nurserymen will come together and require 
the agent to make a small deposit with his application. Let 
the nurserymen explain in the circulars they send out that the 
“ outfit is free,” that they make no charge for the plate book 
and other supplies, but as each outfit costs several dollars, to 
protect themselves against many who would impose on them by 
sending for the outfit with no intention of working, but merely 
out of idle curiosity, as a guarantee of good faith on the part 
of every applicant, require them, aside from filling out the 
application sheet and giving references, to pay, merely as a 
temporary deposit, $i, explaining to the applicant that the $i 
he agrees to pay does not begin to pay the cost of the outfit to 
the nurseryman, but insures them that he means business. The 
$1 to be refunded as soon as orders sent in amount to $15. 
Let it be understood that the outfit is not sold, but that a small 
charge is made as a guarantee that applicant will either use or 
return it. 
Book, clothing, and other concerns who required cash de¬ 
posits of their agents ten years ago are doing so to-day—the 
plan must be all right. If a man really wants work he is 
willing to pay $1 to get it. Any man who would not be will¬ 
ing to pay the $1 would not mean business and the nurserymen 
would be “money in pocket” to let this class severely alone. 
In following this plan the nurserymen would probably receive 
fewer applications, but those applications would come from 
workers. This subject ought to be brought up for discussion 
at the Chicago convention of the American Association next 
month. Peter F. Williams. 
Chicago, May 15, 1899. 
IMPORTS OF A YEAR. 
Plants, trees, etc., and natural flowers to the value of 
$32,658 were imported during the last fiscal year. Of this 
amount those reaching New York, N. Y., represent $29,461 ; 
San Francisco, Cal., $1,822, and Buffalo Creek, N. Y., $1,062. 
Of the total amount there came from Germany a value of 
$288; The United Kingdom, $13,396 ; Bermuda, $14,161; 
Dominion of Canada, $1,081 ; Colombia, $1,316 ; Japan, $429; 
Turkey in Asia, $116 ; and Hawaiian Islands, $1,393. 
AS LONG AS HE IS IN THE BUSINESS. 
M. J. Henry, Vancouver, B. C. : “ I enclose §1 in payment of 
my subscription another year. I shall want your paper as long as I 
continue in business.” 
tforeton IRotes. 
Nursery employees in the Woking, England, district have 
been granted a reduction in the number of hours of labor, viz: 
from 5.30 to 4 p. m. 
Pierpont Morgan has taken the $30,000 Mrs. Lawson carna¬ 
tion to Dover House, Roehampton, England. It is stated 
across the water that the cuttings have been selling in America 
for $50 and $60 apiece. 
From Holland and Belgium, fruit prospects are reported 
good; Spain has unfortunately suffered from late frosts; Aus- 
tro-Hungary has recovered from the heavy storms at the end 
of March, and but little damage done. All continental and 
English farmers are alike complaining of the miserable prices 
at present obtained for wheat. 
It is proposed tq form a new company at Brussels, having 
for its principal objects the production and preparation of 
economic and other plants suitable for cultivation in the colo¬ 
nies, and the introduction into Europe of new and beautiful 
ornamental leaved and flowering plants. The company is to 
be formed with a capital of 2,400,000 francs by the amalgama¬ 
tion of the establishment of L’Horticulture Internationale, Park 
Leopold; the establishment of Messrs. Lucian Linden & Co., 
at Moortbeke, famous for its orchids; and the large establish¬ 
ment founded at Linthout, near Brussels, for the propagation, 
in large quantities, of economic plants. 
Members of the Royal Horticultural Society, London, are 
considering the advisability of sending a collector to the Altai 
mountains, between Mongolia and Siberia, to collect some of 
the rare and interesting plants there. The great continent of 
North America, says Gardeners’ Chronicle, we may well leave 
to our cousins, they are not likely to overlook anything that is 
good; Russia will doubtless monopolize Central Asia and 
Manchuria; but there are, omitting purposely strictly tropical 
and semi-tropical districts, vast areas in China, Nepal, Thibet, 
Upper Burmah, Assam, parts of Asia Minor, Greece, Macedo¬ 
nia, and even in the Danubian provinces of Europe, from 
which supplies might certainly be obtained. The Gardeners’ 
Magazine opposes the project, and advocates study of com¬ 
mercial horticulture instead. 
George Gordon, V. M. H., editor of the Gardeners’ Maga¬ 
zine, recently lectured before the Royal Horticultural Society 
upon “ Experimental Horticulture.” He cited the fact that in 
America and on the Continent many experiment stations had 
been established, while in England there weie too few. He 
suggested: “To bring the experimental plots belonging to 
county councils into union, to formulate the experiments to be 
conducted on them, and to collate and prepare the results for 
publication, must of necessity be the work of some central 
body; and I submit that it is work in which the Royal Horti¬ 
cultural Society might engage with advantage to itself and to 
the whole horticultural community. The society would, I be¬ 
lieve, be perfectly willing to undertake the work, if the county 
councils would only consent to be guided thereby.” 
EVERY NURSERYMAN SHOULD HAVE IT. 
Hart Pioneer Nurseries, Fort Scott, Kan.: “We enclose ex¬ 
change for in payment of our subscription for another year. At 
the nominal price which you ask for the journal no nurseryman in the 
country should remain off your subscription list.” 
